


Short Hair

by ValkyrieWolff (WyckedStarr)



Series: Catradora Shorts [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, F/F, Flashbacks, I'd rather rate it higher than it needs, Kissing, Post-Canon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, rated mature for safety, than accidentally rate it under what I should have
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 08:01:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25750060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WyckedStarr/pseuds/ValkyrieWolff
Summary: It's strange, the things that stick with us when the war is won and the dust settles.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Series: Catradora Shorts [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1842643
Comments: 2
Kudos: 79





	Short Hair

**Author's Note:**

> This fic deals with Adora having a flashback. It's based on my own experience with flashbacks and is not meant to be representative of PTSD and flashbacks as a whole.  
> If that is something that might be triggering for you, please skip this one or have someone check it for you first. Seriously, I gave myself a flashback writing this, please look after yourselves, you're the only you we get.

Adora wasn’t entirely sure why it was so important that she and Catra help Scorpia restore the Fright Zone back to its original state as the Scorpion Kingdom. Sure, the three of them were probably the most familiar with the area of all the Rebellion and sure, She-Ra was kinda needed for the whole magical restoration thing…

Okay, so Adora was lying to herself. She knew exactly why it had to be her and Catra. But in her defence, she was really good at lying to herself and didn’t have much practice with wanting things. Which was why it was such a bummer that her plans to introduce Catra to the wonders of Bright Moon had had to be postponed.

On the other hand, she thought, watching Catra and Scorpia talk about their favourite spots in the Fright Zone, it was nice to see Catra getting to relax a little and rebuild her friendship with Scorpia. Adora was a little bit in awe of how easily Scorpia could break through Catra’s walls. Maybe Perfuma had a point about the power of Scorpia’s friendship.

“What do you think, Adora?”

Adora squeaked and jumped at the sudden question. She’d been so lost in her head that she hadn’t noticed the way the pair had stopped and turned to face her. Her face began to heat as a blush spread across her checks. “Um….”

She was saved from her imminent demise through embarrassment by Catra’s low laugh.

“Dummy,” she muttered, wrapping an arm around Adora’s waist, and tucking herself under Adora’s arm. “Scorpia thinks the best place to start is with the Black Garnet.”

“Oh. Okay! Yeah that makes sense, the runestones are linked to the kingdoms. Scorpia, lead the way!”

Scorpia beamed and clapped her pincers together. “Oh, I can’t wait! Perfuma has been drawing plans for the gardens to grow food and…” she continued forward, cheerfully sharing her thoughts and ideas for the ways they could make the Fright Zone a home again.

Before Adora could follow her though, Catra spun around to face her, claws digging reassuringly into her shoulders.

“What was that?” she asked, her multicoloured eyes holding Adora’s gaze. “Are you okay?”

Adora didn’t miss the way Catra’s eyes briefly flickered down to her chest, where the failsafe had

"once rested. Adora shrugged her shoulders, dislodging Catra’s hands and allowing her to take them in her own. Lacing their fingers together, she smiled.

“I’m fine, just overthinking. It’s weird being back here with the war over and everyone gone.”

Catra’s gaze softened. “It is pretty weird.” She tugged her hands from Adora’s grip and grinned mischievously. “Race you to the chamber,” she called, having started running before she’d even finished issuing the challenge.

“No fair!” Adora laughed, running after her.

Unsurprisingly, Catra beat her to the Black Garnet chamber. Panting for breath from the run and the laughter, Adora tackled Catra around the waist, sending them both tumbling to the ground at Scorpia’s feet. Pushing and shoving each other, they wrestled breathlessly as they had done so often in the past. Adora has almost gained the upper hand when Catra decided to cheat one again.

“Scorpia, help!” She managed to splutter in between giggles.

With a laugh, Scorpia reached down and separated the pair, allowing Catra to scramble up her arm and perch on her broad shoulders. Like the mature adult she was, Catra stuck her tongue out at Adora, blowing a raspberry.

Adora huffed, pretending to grumble about Catra cheating _again_ , though in reality she was too happy to care. After everything that had happened, everything that they’d done to each other, they could still wrestle and have fun and laugh. For a moment, she was frozen as a rush of pure love surged through her, every bit as strongly as it had in the heart chamber.

She leaned against the wall for a moment and allowed herself to just watch as Catra jumped from Scorpia’s shoulders to the ground.

“By the way, wildcat,” Scorpia said, “the short hair is a good look on you.”

Adora froze, feeling as if all the warmth of the precious moment had drained out of her. Dimly, as if from a distance, she heard Catra laugh and comment about it being more manageable with all the camping, but it’s not long before that too seems to fade away, leaving Adora standing on Prime’s ship, seeing Catra push the white hood back, Catra’s voice and Catra’s words, but not Catra.

Somehow, it was the sight of Catra’s hair, shorn close and slicked down, shorter than Adora had ever seen it before that had broken her, not the glowing green eyes and unnatural, empty smile. Not even Shadow Weaver had managed to tame Catra’s hair, the curls as wild and unruly as she was.

The image of Catra, bowed low at Prime’s feet spread horror through her body and soul. Not Catra, not her Catra, she couldn’t be too late, it couldn’t be over. Prime’s words were like knives, each stabbing into her. And Catra’s…

“I mean, the only person in the Horde I’d have trusted at my back with scissors would have been Adora and could you imagine me with that little hair poof?” Catra pulled her hair back to demonstrate, grinning broadly at Scorpia.

“No, no I really couldn’t,” Scorpia said on a laugh.

Catra turned to Adora, gleefully anticipating her response to the hair poof comment, only to see her frozen, face blank and eyes wide, staring at nothing.

“Adora!”

Catra darted to her side, just in time to catch Adora in her arms as her legs gave out and she slid to the ground.

“ADORA!” Catra cried again, her heart beginning to race. Memories of holding Adora in the heart filled her mind, but there were no green tendrils here, no failsafe shining eerily, only Adora, frozen and lost someplace Catra couldn’t reach her.

Adora lunged forward as Catra fell, the hair that had broken free of the gel framing her face.

Her own hair freed in the fight, Adora only paused for a second before going over the ledge after her. Catra’s hair was mussed, curls fighting the hold of the gel the same way Catra had fought Prime’s hold. Her body was twisted and Adora could feel the broken bones shifting as she gathered Catra’s body into her arms. She was struggling to draw breath, each one rasping and painful. Adora held Catra close, unminding of her own pain. Subconsciously, she tried to weave her fingers into Catra’s mane like she had done so many times before, when they were both little and needed the physical connection. But the short strands were stiff and crunchy, nothing like they should have been.

Prime had taken that from her too. Had taken her friends, her childhood, was trying to take her planet, her home. She sobbed out a breath, holding Catra tight, tears welling in her eyes, heart breaking. She couldn’t go home without Catra, she’d promised! She’d promised…

“ADORA!”

It felt like Catra’s voice was coming from down a hallway, distant and far away. She blinked rapidly to clear the tears and gradually Catra’s face faded into view. Her unruly short hair sticking up everywhere. Without realising what she was doing, Adora reached up to run a hand through that hair, only half hearing Catra’s choked sob of relief. Catra turned her head ever so slightly into Adora’s palm, breathing deeply.

“Catra?” Adora breathed out, eyes searching Catra’s face.

“You just collapsed,” Catra said brokenly, pulling Adora more firmly into her arms. Held tight in her arms, Adora could feel the subtle shaking of Catra’s shoulders.

“What happened?” Catra whispered into Adora’s hair.

“It’s stupid,” Adora muttered, turning her face away from Catra.

“Well duh,” Catra said as she pulled away to look Adora in the eye, trying for her usual exasperated tone. “But clearly I like your kind of stupid, dummy.”

Adora managed to force a laugh through the tears still clogging her throat. She briefly met Catra’s eyes before dropping her gaze to stare at her hands again.

“It’s stupid,” she repeated, holding up a hand to stave off Catra’s annoyed hiss. “I just… Scorpia commented on your hair and all of a sudden, I was just… back on Prime’s ship and…”

Adora trailed off as Catra raised a hand to rub self-consciously at her short-cropped hair, hand drifting to the back of her neck, where Prime’s chip had once sat. Adora grabbed her hands and pulled them to her chest.

“And, and, it’s not that I don’t think you look beautiful,” she babbled, “because you do, you would even with no hair, but sometimes I remember that moment and it was such a shock…”

Catra interrupted Adora mid-ramble. “You’d be okay with me having no hair huh?”

Adora blinked and opened her mouth to say something, she wasn’t sure what to be honest, but Catra stopped her before she could continue.

“It’s not stupid to be upset, Adora. Sometimes I don’t know how you manage to be so not upset all the time.” The tone in Catra’s voice snapped Adora to attention. Catra had looked away now, guilt clear on her face, ears pressed against her skull.

“Catra, no.” Adora said firmly. “It’s not the same and you know it.” She sighed. “Prime took whatever he wanted, did what he wanted because he felt he had the right to. I just feel stupid that out of everything he did to you, to us, to the _universe_ , him cutting your hair is still what’s messing me up. And it’s even more stupid that it bothers me when it doesn’t bother you. It’s your hair!”

Catra’s hands rose to cradle Adora’s face as a soft smile spread across her features. She tugged gently on a piece of Adora’s ponytail. “Netossa clearly underestimated the extent of your hair envy,” she teased.

Adora rolled her eyes, but the tightness in her chest eased a little further. “Catra…” Adora said softly, bring up her hands to cover Catra’s.

“It’s not stupid,” Catra repeated. “I wish he hadn’t taken that choice away from me, but Adora,” Catra stared intensely into Adora’s eyes, refusing to let her look away. “It’s hair, it’ll grow back. And even if it didn’t, even if my hair was short forever, if it meant we got to be here, together, than it would be worth it. Because I love you.”

Adora’s eyes widened, still not used to hearing Catra say it. She watched the blush spread across her face and slid her hands down Catra’s arms.

“I love you too,” she whispered as she pulled Catra in to kiss her soft and slow. The hands that had been framing her face slid into her hair, dislodging the hair tie.

Catra tangled her fingers into the blonde strands of hair, deepening the kiss with a tilt of her head.

“You’ve been talking to Perfuma,” Adora muttered as she pulled away to gasp for air.

“Don’t mention your princess friends while we’re kissing,” Catra hummed, using her grip on Adora’s hair to pull her back into the kiss.

“They’re your friends too,” Adora breathed against Catra’s lips, one hand sliding down her waist as the other slid into her messy hair. “And that’s not a no.”

“Idiot,” Catra laughed into the kiss, arching into Adora’s touch.

Neither of them noticed the sparkle of magic that briefly entered the chamber or heard the whispered “Sorry!” before another burst of magic filled the room, lost in the wonder of love and each other.

Back at Bright Moon, Glimmer whirled out of the room, ignoring the bright red Scorpion Princess and her stuttered apologies.

“Every time!” she hissed violently, throwing her hands into the air. “Bow! How’s that memory eraser going?”

_Fin_

**Author's Note:**

> This was the first idea I had for a Catradora fic, the thing that made me want to start writing again. I have a lot of thoughts and emotions about hair, about the cutting of hair and of other people having a stronger emotional connection to your hair than you have. Feel free to ask me about it in the comments if you're curious.


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